THE PRODUCER : Le Tobele

Aging: Ages in small oak casks for 18-24 months.

Amarone della Valpolicella is an intensely flavoured dry red wine made from dried (passito) grapes. Made in the Veneto region of north-eastern Italy, it is arguably the region’s most prestigious red wine.
The grapes used to make modern Amarone wines are of the local Corvina variety and its sub-variety Corvinone, and Molinara or Rondinella may also be blended. They are picked in whole bunches and kept in drying rooms (with warm temperatures and low humidity) where they stay about three/four months. When the drying process (known as appassimento in Italian) is complete, the grapes are gently pressed and the must (grape juice) is fermented to dry. The grapes’ high sugar content means a higher potential alcohol, so a complete fermentation results in a strong wine of 15% or 16% alcohol by volume.

Nose: Aromas of spicy plum and cherry with hints of raspberry.

Taste: The palate is soft, velvety and full-bodied with a slightly aromatic lingering finish.